73-Year-Old Cancer Survivor Hits Two Holes-in-One in Same Round

Not only can Erroll Cook, 73, boast that he beat cancer, but he can also boast of doing something very few golfers have ever seen, let alone accomplish: hitting two holes-in-one on the same nine holes.

“It happened last weekend when Cook was playing with friends on the manicured Donald Ross Course in West Caldwell. The first shot was on the 14th hole, a straight 150-yard Par 3 that looked good leaving the tee but rolled out of sight after landing on the green,” CBS New York reports.

“Cook, his partners, and the caddy all searched the area without luck until they found his ball where they least expected: in the cup. He’d aced it,” the report adds.

About a half hour later, Cook jokingly asked what the odds were of hitting another hole-in-one (about 1-in-67 million). Everyone had a good laugh but then, according to eyewitness accounts, Cook did it again.

“It want over the water,” he said to CBS 2’s Lou Young, “and there’s a (sand) trap. It went over the trap, then five yards to the right and all of us just went hysterical when it went in!”

“I think our eyes popped out of our heads. It was dramatic,” said fellow golfer Dr. Joel Matkin.

Of course, when news of his accomplishment reached the clubhouse, there was a great deal of skepticism. And why not? Golfers are notorious for, um, “exaggerating.” However, golfers also love to call out cheaters. So when other golfers swore up and down that Cook did indeed hit two holes-in-one, people warmed up to the idea and Cook has become something of a celebrity in his community.

Another golfer Norm Feinstein said he’s never heard of two holes-in-one happening twice to the same golfer in the same round.

“You can’t put odds on it,” Feinstein said, “because I’m not sure it’s ever happened before.”

“It turns out that in the history of the sport roughly 150 people have managed the two-in-one trick. Very few, though, managed to accomplish the feat in the same nine holes,” CBS New York reports.

“It’s only happened twice on the PGA Tour. Daniel Chopra managed it on the 7th and 17th holes at Pebble Beach earlier this year during a practice round,” the report adds.

However, seeing as there is no photographic evidence of Cook's accomplishment, there will always be doubt surrounding his alleged achievement. But, again, the fact that other golfers are willing to attest to it does carry some weight.